Ivan the Terrible
"Ivan the Terrible - he's brutal. He has the best weapons. He's mad. The combination - ballistic!" - Vladimir Orlov, Ivan the Terrible expert Ivan the Terrible, Russia's sadistic 16th Century tsar whose murderous, mounted death squads built Europe's largest empire of its time; vs. Hernán Cortés, the brutal Spanish explorer whose conquistadors conquered the largest empire in North America of the 16th Century. Stats *1560 AD (Early Livonian War) *Age- 30 *6' *180 lbs Symbol- Bardiche (Signature Weapon) History Born in 1530, Ivan IV (better known as Ivan the Terrible) became the Grand Prince of Moscow when he was only three, following his father's death by blood poisoning. At the age of 8, Ivan's mother died and the Boyar noblemen of Russia attempted to seige power from the young prince, but Ivan was able to stay. In 1547, age 16, he proclaimed himself the first Tsar of All Russia. During his reign, Russia conquered ﻿Khanates of Kazan, Astrakhan, and Siberia, transforming Russia into a multiethnic nation covering over one-and-a-half million square miles. However, after the death of his wife in 1560, Ivan grew more paranoid and allegedly, psychotic. In 1581, he beat his pregnant daughter-in-law for wearing immodest clothing, causing her to have a miscarriage. His son, also named Ivan, upon learning of this, engaged in a heated argument with his father, which ended when Ivan struck his son in the head with a pointed staff, causing his (accidental) death. Ivan created the first Streltsy (Russian ﻿guardsmen armed with firearms) units sometime between 1545 and 1550. Ivan also created the Oprichnina, an area in northern Russia where his henchmen, known as Oprichniki'' (who some historians write that Ivan's second wife Maria Temryukovna incited him to create) tortured and executed thousands of his enemies. On March 28, 1584, Ivan the Terrible died of a stroke while playing chess. This left the kingdom in the hands of Ivan's other son, the unfit and childless Feodor I. Weapons Simulated Battle Ivan The Terrible Hernán Cortés The battle begins in a field with Ivan the Terrible knelt in a silent prayer, surrounded by 2 Russian Streltsy soldiers and 2 Oprichniki horsemen. He looks toward the sky, and then looks down to a bloodied prisoner tied to two horses, who is about to be quartered. Ivan smirks at the condemned as he rises from his kneeling position. Elsewhere, Hernán Cortés and 4 of his conquistadors are out for a ride when Cortés suddenly spots the group of men. The First Tsar of Russia nods to one of the hooded Oprichniki and the horsemen begin to pull. Ivan laughs at the prisoner's pain as Cortés, who has dismounted from horseback, shows concern and signals for his men to take position with their Arquebus rifle. Ivan immediately stops laughing when he notices the group of men aiming their firearms at his death squad. Cortés gives the signal with his sword and the conquistadors open fire. Before the gunmen fire, Ivan quickly grabs one of his soldiers and pulls him in front of him. The Russian is killed by the assault of bullets but the Terrible Tsar is knocked down to the ground by the force of the bullets. As the Spanish riflemen hurry to reload their rifles, Ivan gets back to his feet and runs over to one of the horses, pulling the Oprichnik down. Meanwhile, the last soldier sets up his Bardiche axe as a mount for his Pischal rifle, shooting and killing one of the Spaniards who shot the other soldier. file:bluedead.png Ivan draws his Sablia and rides on, pulling the prisoner in half and dragging the torso behind him. The remaining soldier and the dismounted Oprichnik charge the Spaniards. The conquistadors calmly hold their ground as one of the Spaniards takes an Alabarda from his horse and hands it to Cortés. As the conquistadors continue to reload, Ivan rides up and slashes one of them in the face, killing him instantly. file:bluedead.png He then changes course and rides to a retreating conquistador who has his Espada Ropera drawn and slashes him in the back of the neck, also killing him. file:bluedead.png Elsewhere, the mounted Oprichnik draws his Sablia and rides towards Cortés, who is still armed with his Alabarda. Cortés holds his ground and reaches with the poleaxe, pulling the hooded man down from horseback. Cortés then raises the poleaxe and brings it down into the Oprichnik's face. file:reddead.png The last Oprichnik charges at the head conquistador with his saber drawn. Cortés lifts the axe from the dead man's hood, parrying the sword and countering with a thrust attack, which impales the Oprichnik through the chest. file:reddead.png Cortés then calls for his horse, which the last mounted conquistador brings to him. The conquistador then rides on with his sword drawn. However, he is shot off his horse by the last soldier, who then finishes him off with a strike to the mid-section with his Bardiche while he is still down. file:bluedead.png Cortés then charges forth on his horse, slashing the Russian in the face with his Espada Ropera as he lifts the heavy Bardiche for a strike. file:reddead.png Ivan then spots Cortés and charges at him, sword raised. Ivan slashes Cortés as he rides by, but Cortés is unfazed as the saber bounces off his steel breastplate. After the charge is finished, Ivan notices that Cortés managed to cut him on his right cheek. Ivan gleefully licks the blood from his finger, then gives a shout as he and Cortés charge at each other, both men shouting. As the warriors ride past each other, Cortés ducks under Ivan's wild swing and thrusts his sword forward, puncturing Ivan's neck. Ivan slumps down in his saddle as he quickly bleeds out, then falls face down from his horse to the ground. Hernán Cortés then walks up to the fallen Tsar, holding his right breast where the sword struck him and kicks Ivan to make sure that he's dead. Seeing no movement, Cortés holds his sword up and kneels down, taking the dead Tsar's money pouch and finding gold coins. Smiling at his spoils, Cortés stands up and raises his sword, shouting "¡Gloria!" (Glory) triumphantly. Trivia * Despite his cruel acts, Ivan's title is actually meant as praise. "Groznyi", translated as terrible, is meant to convey power or strictness. * Ivan is the first famous warrior on the show with two different minions, the '''Streltsy' and the Oprichniki. * The official Deadliest Warrior website declares Ivan as 'the Saddam Hussein of his time' and 'Season 3's Vlad the Impaler'. * According to the Ivan experts, Ivan considered himself as the Archangel Michael and considered it as his divine mission to bring down righteous vengeance on all those he saw as against God. * Ivan is the only warrior featured in the show who has used chain mail armor that is accurate to historical examples, being the only mail shirt used so far with riveted links. * Ivan is the first warrior to use one of his men as a human shield. The first warrior to use a human shield in a simulated battle is one of the Yakuzas, who used an innocent bystander as a human shield. * Tsar is a title that translations to Caesar, meaning Ivan saw himself as the same position as a Roman Emperor. * Many consider the KGB to be based off of the Oprichniki, as both controlled their nations with terror. Category:Warriors Category:Named Warriors Category:Season 3 Category:Defeated Warriors Category:Modern Warriors Category:Horse Warriors Category:Gun Powder Warriors Category:Criminal Warriors Category:Political Leaders